Flagstaff City Council Considers Energy Caps

Last week, local blogger Jeff Oravits reported that the Flagstaff City Council is considering a plan to implement energy caps on homes and businesses. This plan is being pushed by environmentalists and busybody activists who think they have the right to (figuratively or literally) come into your house or business and tell you to turn off your lights, turn down your thermostat and take shorter showers.

When I posted Jeff’s article on my Facebook page, one of my Flagstaff friends who supports the caps responded with the following:

“Leaving the lights on contributes to polluting the atmosphere with carbon causing climate change and global warming. That is making a mess outside your property and morally you must not do it even if you can afford to. You have a responsibility to the rest of us that your actions will not harm us.”

That got me to thinking. Every single member of the Flagstaff City Council drives a car, uses electricity, and takes a shower (or at least I hope they shower). Most even support using taxpayer dollars for Christmas lights during the holiday season. They also tend to fly to Washington DC fairly often to beg for money. Do they know how much energy they are using and how much pollution they are creating every time they make that trip?

Of course, they do those wonderful things for the public good so that pollution doesn’t count.

I’m sure it’s also clear that the energy I use in my house is not good for anyone. It’s for my own selfishness. Wanting to read a book at night or turning the heater up to keep my son warm during freezing weather is harming people and causing global warming and I cannot morally justify it.

While talking to energy cap proponents, I asked if they use electricity in their homes. Do they believe that we should have a zero tolerance light policy? Is there an acceptable amount of pollution that they are ok with? I never got a straight answer because they obviously use energy and answering those questions would prove that their position is hypocritical.

The simple truth is that most of the people who support energy caps are nanny state champions who want to bully people and regulate society to fit their extreme vision for the world. Nothing is off the table for these control freaks and any tactic that helps promote their agenda is considered fair and justifiable.

I’ll never forget picking my son up from Kindergarten a couple years ago and finding him in tears. When I asked what was wrong he said that if we didn’t turn off our lights, polar bears would die. I don’t know who was feeding him that garbage but it made me furious. It’s never too early to start teaching our kids to question and research everything. Fear and scare can go a long way but facts and truth will stop propaganda in it’s tracks.

Speaking of facts, this is the kind of hypocrisy you run into if you refuse to take the fear at face value and decide to scratch below the surface:

Before readers start accusing me of being insensitive and uncaring, let me make something very clear. I sincerely care about the environment and I go out of my way to conserve energy and use what I have wisely. I would never defend waste or pollution. I am also a big supporter of alternative energy and creative solutions to environmental problems.

What I don’t support is the government mandating “solutions”. More often than not, government is the problem. Oil subsidies certainly don’t encourage alternative energy. Corn subsidies don’t encourage healthy food. Local laws that say my yard is too small to raise chickens do not promote the food independence that many in Flagstaff are striving for. Get the government out of the way!

It’s been said that libertarians are the best environmentalists because we believe in taking responsibility for our actions. Russell Means sums it up well:

“A libertarian society would not allow anyone to injure others by pollution because it insists on individual responsibility. That’s part of the beauty of libertarianism.”

When the government starts mandating things like energy caps or environmentally friendly products, there are often unintended consequences. CFL light bulbs are a perfect example. They are anything but environmentally friendly. Don’t break one. Check out the cleanup instructions from the EPA! This is the kind of insanity that has been gaining steam across the country and especially here in Flagstaff. It’s time the people of Flagstaff stood up and said enough is enough.

Please contact the Flagstaff City Council and tell them that you are opposed to these proposed energy caps. You can find their contact information here.